Thank you Nora (wasforgas) for this beautiful video. I got some pictures, but not like yours (see Scotland Trip page above). I remember waving to you, as you were settling into your very good seat way down in front. Oh the excitement in the air that night! Just wonderful! We were so lucky to get our great front row center balcony seats at the last minute. I can't believe I was there to see this fantastic great performance. I hope TPTB still work on reviving the I Dreamed A Dream stage show. It is a feel good, wonderful and powerful great show, full of emotions, that everyone would love to see. Thank you.
Blackburn Gala Day has been saved after a large turn out at an emergency meeting.
The gala day, which started 112 years ago, looked in danger of being cancelled after only four people turned up to their last meeting in March.
However, after gala president Davie Richardson appealed through the Courier for more volunteers last month, more than 30 people turned up.
And Davie is confident this year’s event can now go ahead after such a positive response.
He said: “We had 33 people turn up at the meeting and they have all offered to help, which is what we wanted and needed.
“We’ve struggled for years but it had got to a stage where we couldn’t go on like that. I’ve been on the committee for 15 years and it was the worst it had ever been.
“If we hadn’t got more help then we would have been forced to cancel it.
“However, after raising awareness of what was going on in the Courier we got a great response and we’re very pleased with how it went.
“We had a great discussion and everything is on track for the gala day this year.
“The people who turned up have also said they will come to the next meeting as well.
“I would like to thank everyone who came along and thanks must also go to the Courier for highlighting the issue.”
The gala day is on Saturday, June 8, 2013
Programmes (£2) and wristbands for unlimited rides on shows in the park (£10) are on sale at Blackburn Post Office.
Finally finished collating all the information that was gathered at last weeks community meeting. Thanks to everyone who completed the forms. Expect emails and text coming your way soon :)
One thing we didn't manage to get any help with was another vehicle for the kids to ride on in the parade. Does anyone have an open back van they could allow us to use for the day?
The fairytale story of a miner’s daughter from a tiny village in Scotland storming the charts and selling millions of albums is the stuff of Hollywood dreams.
But Susan Boyle’s story doesn’t need a scriptwriter with a vivid imagination... because it writes itself.
Now the Britain’s Got Talent star has revealed her rise to fame is being made into a major biopic.
And in an exclusive interview Susan, 51, says she would like British legend Julie Walters to play her in the movie.
“My story will make a great film,” she says. “We are in the middle of negotiations just now for a film about my life.
“There’s only one person I’d love to play me – and that’s Julie Walters. She would do the job and you just know she would do my story justice.
“The success I’ve had is surreal and unbelievable. I never expected to be able to do a tenth of what I’ve done. But now I’ve done it I just want to do everything and take every opportunity that comes my way.”
Susan is still stunned by the public’s response to her: “When I signed the recording contract originally I had no idea what I was doing, to be honest. I just signed papers and started singing.
“I had no idea how far I would go. I just walked into Sony after the show and said I’d enjoy the process while it lasts. And now there will be a film of my life. It’s truly amazing.”
Dean with Susan and Donny
It’s less than four years since Susan came second to dance troupe Diversity on Britain’s Got Talent and since then she’s sold more than 18 million albums worldwide and is said to be worth £30million.
Her original audition for the reality show – where she said she hoped to one day be as great a singer as Elaine Page – has been watched more than 100 million times.
We are backstage at Dancing With The Stars and Susan has just performed This Is The Moment with Donny Osmond live for the first time. She was physically shaking on stage, yet insisted on wearing three-inch heels.
“I was full of nerves performing with Donny,” she admits over a cup of tea in her trailer at CBS Studios in Los Angeles.
“But it was everything and more. I’ve been a fan of his since I was a teenager and I could never in my wildest dreams have imagined that I would one day be performing with him.”
Despite singing all over the globe in front of millions – and doing a duet with her idol Elaine Paige – Susan still suffers from crippling nerves. And the shoes didn’t help.
“But I love the big heels!” she says. “It’s nice having designers and shops offering me a discount for clothes. I’ve only recently starting to enjoy shopping.
“I’m getting used to the attention these days and being who I am. I’m taking it all in my stride if people recognise me.
“You have to accept it with what I’m doing – it’s part of the job. I’m not dressing up like Michael Jackson in disguise yet. I enjoy meeting people and it’s not a bad thing for me getting out and about.”
Susan sings live with her idol Donny Osmond
FilmMagic
You quickly realise Susan has a wicked sense of humour. Yet rather unnervingly she doesn’t look you in the eye during an interview until she’s comfortable with you.
She’s frightfully honest about everything – including what television shows she loves and what’s wrong with them. And she’s clearly not impressed that her boss Simon Cowell isn’t a part of The X Factor right now.
She says: “He’ll be annoyed I’m saying that and I’ll probably be punished. But there’s no show really without Simon in the chair as the top judge in the UK. There’s no show without the main man.”
But she admits she doesn’t see much of her mentor these days. “I’m not really in touch with Simon at all nowadays,” she says. “I never see him at all – he’s a very busy man at the end of the day.”
Susan is very humble about her success and says she still can’t believe what she’s been able to achieve. And her fans are as loyal as ever, travelling from all over the States to watch her and Donny perform.
The die-hards wear red scarves to show their allegiance.“It’s nice to meet the fans,” she says. “But it’s also nice to come away and be alone by yourself too. You need that balance. Or I do.
“I wouldn’t want to be one of those people dealing with security teams and paparazzi. I don’t think I’d enjoy that somehow. I like getting out there meeting people and being me.
“I’m very low maintenance. My friends and family and neighbours back home have kept me from going mad. There’s a great community spirit and it’s a great thing for me.”
Despite her millions Susan still lives in the former council house she lived in with her late mother Bridget in Blackburn, West Lothian. The only time she snaps slightly during our interview is when I ask her why she stays in the small house instead of buying a spacious pad.
“It’s my mother’s house and I have no intention of ever moving out,” she says firmly. “That’s where I will stay. I’ve had a refit and it’s been renovated a wee bit.
“But I do think I’m going to splash out on a holiday home in Ireland at some point – that would be nice. But I’m not jazzy with things. I’m very simple.”
She’s still very much a Scottish girl who got lucky. She giggles like mad when I ask if she’s on Twitter. “What’s Twitter? Is that a bird sound?” she teases. “I’m on Twitter officially for the fan forums, but I don’t do it myself. I go on the internet from time to time but I’m not a great surfer.”
To finish the interview we have a quick- fire round. She loves this idea.
Do you think you’d want to settle down and have a fairytale wedding?
“I’m not looking and I’m in no hurry,” she says carefully. “That’s all I’ll say.”
The best thing about fame?
She beams: “Being picked up in fancy cars. I don’t ask for anything else. The only thing I really splash out on is going on holiday. I love to be in the sun. I’m off to Tenerife soon with some friends.”
Have you ever tried sushi?
She surprises me: “I have. I like it a lot.”
Does she have a beauty regime?
“I use moisturisers to keep those wrinkles away but I don’t do much else. I like getting my hair and make-up done.”
Will you ever have plastic surgery?
She smiles: “I think I’m growing old gracefully and I want to leave myself as I am. I’m fine with that.”
The final question is what does the future hold for Susan Boyle? “The future for me will be rosy – really rosy,” she says. “But don’t expect me to do Page 3 – I’m too old for all that.”
- SUSAN’S new album Standing Ovation: The Greatest Songs From The Stage is out November 19
So very sorry and sad for the victims and innocent citizens attending a long-standing honorable, worldwide event in Boston yesterday- The Boston Marathon. My prayers go out to the three who died and the many fans who were hurt, some still in critical condition. People across the nation are praying and wishing peace to all. Hold your head up high, we are all walking with you. Susan Boyle Fansite @a susan_boyle_com
Susan Boyle is only now starting to become more relaxed about her success, which she doesn't believe she had really deserved.
According to Stereotude (video above), the 50 year old star doesn't think she "deserved" her success.
Boyle became famous after her participation in the television talent search show Britain's Got Talent. She lost out on the winning title to a dance group, and checked into rehab for exhaustion when the show ended.
Susan Boyle believed she would be forgotten soon. Boyle is quoted as saying, 'I thought no one would take me seriously afterwards. They'd just assume I was crazy.'
According to MonstersAndCritics.com, Boyle says "Because I'd risen so quickly, I was frightened I was going to sink quickly too. At the same time, I felt I didn't really deserve all the success I'd had. Although I still worry about that, I'm getting more relaxed now."
Continuing in the celebration of Susan Boyle's 4th Anniversary of her BGT audition in 2009 - so many stories at that time - here is one about Paul Wood who created the Susan-Boyle fan site. The story brings us information about the origin of the biggest and most active fan site on the Internet today: Susan-Boyle.com (SBFII),
Ok, by now you've heard the story of Susan Boyle, the British churchlady/spinster who wowed the crowd at Britian's Got Talent. If you haven't - then take a minute and look at the clip to understand the pure power of what an unexpected talent can do.
But the Susan Boyle story has a lot more going on than just the music phenomenon, thought that's interesting to be sure.
Take, for example, the story of Paul Wood.
Paul Wood is a construction worker in London, who's got the bug for building video networks on the web in his spare time.
So on Saturday night in London last week Wood decided on a lark that this Susan Boyle woman he read about might 'take off' when Britain's Got Talent would be broadcast. He'd seen her in the auditions and decided to take a risk. He bought the URL Susan-Boyle.com and Sunday night - moments after the broadcast - he had a fan site for her up online.
What Wood didn't know and couldn't know was that some how Susan Boyle connected with a wide variety of people in a deep and powerful way. Why is that? First, you need to see the clip to understand. We can spend a sec and try and psycho-analyze the public: For some, the music is what it's all about. For others, it's the ugly duckling who spreads her wings. And then, it may just be given the economy, with people feeling so beaten up, that watching an underdog totally triumph was just too hard to resist.
It hardly matters. She totally owned the gig - and now she's a rocket. And the best part? This isn't some contrived media event from the pop-culture factory. This is real.
Susan-Boyle.com has created a pop-up destination where people can connect, share stories, record videos, and watch Susan Boyle's video experience. It is a feel good site with most comments gushing with enthusiasm and support. There is something that feels good about watching a community grow organically around such a positive media moment and personality. We just don't have enough of this stuff these days.
Four days later he has a website that is getting close to a million page views a day and has over 12,000 registered members.
The Wall Street Journal reports here that the site's fast growing traffic is the #1 site for Susan-Boyle fans worldwide, providing a unique mix of network clips, user-submitted video testimonials, and a live twitter stream of Susan Boyle fans that updates round the clock from a fast growing worldwide fan base.
It is also worth pointing out, that only in the technologically adept world we live in could such an event be possible. Millions of people flocking to a virtual destination and forming a "flash mob" style community - never meeting each other, but finding a real outlet to come together and share in the moment. Who says technology is making us numb to personal interaction?
Here are just a few of the more than 4,000 comments posted to the site: top gear dave said: "I am a married man of 46 with three kids not normally given to moments of emotional outburts but while watching this delightful lady performing tears streamed down my face. It was definitely a moment when the meek inherited the earth." bookwoman said: Hope as well as talent beam from this video and this woman. And oh, we need both so much. We should be ashamed of the cynicism most of us wallow in, expecting talent only from glitzy packages. I am thrill, touched and grateful for Susan Boyle. God Bless her! U.S.A. fan said: I love her. She represents all the underdogs of the world. She is wonderful. Dr. Bob said: Thanks,Susan... for ringing the bell of believeability for those like yourself who keep on believeing in their dreams. i am happy for you and for your success. God loves you and so do I. torchman25 said: susan boyle, thank you for sharing your beautiful voice to the bankrupt state of california. thank God for the internet! Cheron said: It's 2am here in Saskatoon Canada and I happened upon this video....feelin g all down and freaken sad because its my 59th birthday this day I heard Susan Boyles audition and I smiled the hugest smile....life has hope again because one lady out of nowhere had a dream come true!!
If you haven't had enough, go visit the site and watch a couple videos, hang out with other unlikely fans and witness a neat moment in media history.
How famous is Britain's YouTube sensation Susan Boyle? Her home is staked out with photographers and journalists hoping for an interview, nine days after she...
Susan Boyle, Britain's YouTube singing sensation, continued to conquer America on Friday and ducked questions about potential suitors. She appeared on the "Today" show for...
(SCROLL FOR VIDEO OF THE ORIGINAL PERFORMANCE) SEE SUSAN SING FOR AMERICA ON THURSDAY LONDON -- A middle-aged volunteer church worker with the voice of...
Susan Boyle 2009: One of the best times - and to continue the celebration of Susan's 4th Anniversary I have posted a few items from the SusanBoyle Forum archives. I so enjoy looking back at the beginning of Susan's adventure. Marvelous!
Note: If you are a SusanBoyle Forum member, it is so interesting and much fun to read the earlier blogs/postings. I am sure it is easy to join the forum and well worth it. - http://susan-boyle.com/ - Many of the 2009 fans are still members:
This video is so beautiful and amazing, just had to bring it here for you to enjoy. It was taken by super fan Teesiel, who had gone to Scotland in 2009, plus many more times.
Today we celebrate the fourth anniversary of the founding of http://susan-boyle.com/. This article, written in 2009, tells the story of how Paul Wood began our site ~ the first one for Susan and still the largest and best! We welcome all Susan fans to join our Forum and thank Paul for bringing all of us together to celebrate Susan. Lots of lasting friendships have been made on the Forum ~ we thank Susan for that too! This is just a portion of the article. Happy Anniversary http://susan-boyle.com/ !
"Paul Wood is a construction worker in London, who's got the bug for building video networks on the web in his spare time.
So on Saturday night in London last week Wood decided on a lark that this Susan Boyle woman he read about might 'take off' when Britain's Got Talent would be broadcast. He'd seen her in the auditions and decided to take a risk. He bought the URL Susan-Boyle.com and Sunday night - moments after the broadcast - he had a fan site for her up online."
